According to a report by the Evening Standard on Monday, November 9, 2026, Chelsea have received a fresh assessment of three major refereeing incidents that attracted attention during their 1-0 Premier League defeat to Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

The decisions involved the penalty awarded against Chelsea, a challenge on Cole Palmer that the visitors believed deserved a spot-kick, and an incident between forward Morgan Rogers and Sunderland defender Trai Hume. Former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher examined the situations alongside former footballers Tim Sherwood and Jay Bothroyd on Sky Sports’ Ref Watch programme.

Sunderland claimed all three points on Sunday after Enzo Le Fée converted a first-half penalty. The spot-kick was awarded when Chelsea defender Levi Colwill was penalised for bringing down Brian Brobbey inside the penalty area.

The incident developed after both players initially held each other's shirts outside the box. Brobbey eventually moved in front of Colwill, but the Chelsea defender continued pulling the striker before contact around his heels sent him to the ground.

Gallagher supported referee Jarred Gillett's decision, explaining that Colwill's continued involvement after Brobbey had gained an advantage justified the penalty. Sherwood and Bothroyd also agreed that the defender had committed an offence, although Sherwood acknowledged that both players had been holding each other earlier in the incident.

However, Chelsea had a different view of the decision-making when Palmer went down following contact involving Sunderland players Luke O'Nien and Jules Ahoka. The London club were unhappy that no penalty was awarded despite replays appearing to show O'Nien's boot making contact with the midfielder inside the Sunderland penalty area.

Gallagher explained that Gillett had identified Ahoka as the player responsible for the initial foul against Palmer. Because the referee had already made his decision against Ahoka, VAR could not simply replace that judgement with a different offence involving O'Nien.

The former referee added that the subsequent contact did not reach the required threshold for serious foul play that would have allowed VAR to recommend further intervention. His explanation offered insight into why Chelsea's appeal was unsuccessful despite the additional contact visible on replay.

The final incident involved Rogers and Hume. The Chelsea forward appeared to make contact with the Sunderland defender's head using his knee as he walked past him while Hume was on the ground.

Gallagher declined to describe the action as deliberate, pointing to a wider camera angle that appeared to show Rogers was not looking towards Hume. He said only the Chelsea player could know whether the contact was intentional or accidental.

The three assessments have added to the debate surrounding Chelsea's defeat, particularly over the consistency of refereeing decisions and the role of VAR in reviewing incidents during Premier League matches.